What is Shmita and why should it matter to me?
Scriptures tell us to stay ready, for when we see these things, that He is near.
The convergence of world events, scriptural admonitions, Jewish feasts and Holidays, and ancient Biblical prophecies all point to a climax of time.
The Sabbath year (shmita Hebrew: שמיטה, literally “release”) also called the sabbatical year or sheviit (Hebrew: שביעית, literally “seventh”) is the seventh year of the seven-year agricultural cycle mandated by the Torah for the Land of Israel, and still observed in contemporary Judaism.
During shmita, the land is left to lie fallow and all agricultural activity, including plowing, planting, pruning and harvesting, is forbidden by halakha (Jewish law).
Chapter 25 of the Book of Leviticus promises bountiful harvests to those who observe the shmita, and describes its observance as a test of religious faith. There is little notice of the observance of this year in Biblical history, and it appears to have been much neglected. (edited text from Wikipedia.org)
If you want more detailed information, try this link.
Jewish teaching on ‘What Is Shemittah?’
Now back to the interesting facts about upcoming Jewish practices and holidays as they foreshadow the 2nd Coming of Christ.
Fact one:
The nation of Israel practices Shmita law. Beginning in 1951, agricultural land in Israel was required to remain untilled. The last year of Shmita was 2007. The newest year of Shmita begins TODAY, September 24, 2014.
Fact two:
Year of Jubilee happens in 50 year cycles, following the 7th year of Shmita. It is important to remember that Shmita and the Year of Jubilee are linked.
Seven cycles of Shmita equals 49 years and the following year is A Year of Jubilee and in The Year of Jubilee, all debts are supposed to be cancelled, all land is supposed to be returned to its original owner. Liberty is proclaimed throughout the land. Stated another way, The Year of Jubilee is a year of LIBERATION. (An Interesting footnote: The Jubilee verse on liberty appears inscribed on the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia.)
Unfortunately, the state of Israel has yet to recognize a year of Jubilee. There are varied opinions why this is true but it is a considered opinion that many of Israel’s troubles stem from the fact that the do not observe this law.
But, God is still a mercifull God. Consider the next facts.
Fact three:
1916 was a year of Shmita. The FOLLOWING year, Jerusalem was liberated from the Turks.
Fact four:
1965 was a year of Shmita. Forty-nine years after the 1916 Shmita. The FOLLOWING year, Jerusalem was re-liberated from the Arabs.
Both 1916 and 1965 were seventh Shmitas, preceding a year of Jubilee.
Remember, that Liberation is the central theme of Jubilee.
Now consider that the year 2015 would be the next Year of Jubilee, if the Jews were observing this law or holiday.
Fact five:
We are currently in the 70th Jubilee cycle since the very first Jubilee. (The first Jubilee occurred when Joshua led the children of Israel into the promised land and liberated it from the Canaanites.)
First, seventy is a prophetic number.
- Daniel the prophet spoke of 70 sevens that must be fulfilled in order for redemption to come.
- Jeremiah the prophet spoke of 70 years of judgment, in which Israel would be enslaved to Babylon.
- The enslavement, by the way, occurred because Israel did not keep the statutes of the Jubilee. Therefore Israel was enslaved to their worst enemy, Babylon.
Second, the beginning of that liberation was heralded with the blowing of the Yobel rams horns. The word “Jubilee” comes from Yobel. Another coincidental footnote is that the blowing of the seventh trumpet, the walls of Jericho collapsed.
Seventy is a prophetic number.
- Daniel the prophet spoke of 70 sevens that must be fulfilled in order for redemption to come.
- Jeremiah the prophet spoke of 70 years of judgment in which Israel would be enslaved to Babylon.
- The enslavement, by the way, occurred because Israel did not keep the statutes of the Jubilee. Therefore, Israel was enslaved to their worst enemy, Babylon.
This might suggest that the 70th Jubilee is especially significant, if we stay with the THEME of previous years of Jubilee, which is LIBERATION.
Fact six:
Jesus teaches us in Matthew 24:29 “But immediately after the tribulation of those days THE SUN WILL BE DARKENED, AND THE MOON WILL NOT GIVE ITS LIGHT, AND THE STARS WILL FALL from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
30 “And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the SON OF MAN COMING ON THE CLOUDS OF THE SKY with power and great glory.
31 “And He will send forth His angels with A GREAT TRUMPET and THEY WILL GATHER TOGETHER His elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other.
32 ¶ “Now learn the parable from the fig tree: when its branch has already become tender and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near;
33 so, you too, when you see all these things, recognize that He is near, right at the door.
Please recognize that these verses coincide with the verses in Revelation 6:12 through Revelation 7:1 which follow the great world wide persecution of Believers.
World events strongly suggest that time is near.
Fact Seven:
The Day of Atonement, also known as Yom Kippur, which represents the SECOND COMING OF MESSIAH to the Jew, occurs on September 22nd – 23rd, 2015.
The Day of Atonement in 2015, completes FORTY “Day of Jubilee” cycles since Christ’s death. This ‘coincidence’ is hard to ignore since the number “40” is consistenty a number of Judgment.
Could 2015, the year of the 70th Jubilee, be that year? Could this be the time the planet is redeemed or LIBERATED by Christ’s return to defeat Satan and reclaim earth and all His own, for the Kingdom of God?
Before all this happens, Jesus said there would be a time of tribulation (Matthew 24) that will grow with intensity and then become worse than any other time in history, The Great and Terrible Day of the Lord, or the GREAT TRIBULATION (starting in Matthew 24:19).
Scriptures tell us to stay ready when we see these things that He is near.
The convergence of world events, scriptural admonitions, Jewish feasts and Holidays, and ancient Biblical prophecies all point to a climax of time.
Your Brother and Friend,
Mike Young
Whitestone Fellowship 